If you have spare capacity after all that you can start thinking about any practical help or ministry you feel God wants you to contribute!

With thanks to Andrew Purchase, Urban Design Church, Singapore

While church is always people on a mission, loving Jesus and taking His good news everywhere, meetings and buildings are awesome tools. “They gathered together in temple courts and from house to house” and, we totally love that model. Especially the gathering together.

But just getting together is not enough and if we want to be the church on a mission, we do need to embrace prayer, worship, teaching, prophesy etc, etc, during our times together. Its no hardship, we love that stuff!

So we launched Sunday meetings on 1 April 2012. Yes, April fools day. And what a day it was. A team of friends came to PE from Cape Town to help us market and set up the meeting. Sarah, our amazing designer worked overtime to get the final printing done. Our children gathered to celebrate with us… and many people from this friendly city came to join us. The net result was a wonderful time with people God loves in His presence. A simple worship service that represented our hearts to gather  to Jesus.

We are so grateful to local PE churches who have sown into our beginnings, and to the many who have prayed. We surely are reaping where we have not sown.

We are also grateful to the many people who came not knowing who we are or what to expect. It takes a special type of person to join a church in its early months.

So Sundays will roll on, Easter Sunday is this week. And mid week meetings will continue to multiply and grow. And we will advance throughout the city, providing access and calling people to Jesus. “And the gates of hell will not prevail” because Jesus regins and He is sending us.

One Life. Living alive.

One Life Update

Wow, our last post was ages ago. I guess thats what can happen when you stop planning to church plant and you actually start doing it. No excuses but we have been busy with many things.

In the run-up to our first Sunday meetings (in April) we invite you to some pre-launch meetings

Wednesday 29 February 7.00pm – 8.30pm
Monday 5 March 7.00pm – 8.30pm

These are meetings afford time for us to share and you to hear hear first hand WHY WE ARE PLANTING a church in Port Elizabeth, WHAT KIND OF CHURCH we will be and HOW WE INTEND TO ENGAGE people and cities with the story Jesus.

We invite all friend, friends of friends and interested people to join us. 

Come early and bring someone, anyone, everyone!!

113 Westview Drive, Mill Park, Port Elizabeth.

Much Love. 

Dave and Megs

In this series I will discuss some of the words that are “real” for us as we establish this church in Port Elizabeth. They are words that we believe God has spoken to us and my discussion of them here is an attempt to share how they might help to define us. If you have read other parts of the blog you might have already seen some of this content bleed into my previous posts.

1. Full access.

Church is church right? We maybe yes maybe no. The answer depends on what you’re asking and perhaps more importantly, what you understand church to be. By bible definition, The Church is people, people who have a restored relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ. But some won’t have any idea what that even means let alone why it’s necessary or important. So its vital that in the context and community of church there is loads of space for people who are, by definition, not the church. Spaces where people can experience, test, and connect with people who are convicted and committed.  Space where the ground is VERY level and lines are blurred, where little concern is expressed for who is in and who is out. Not seeker sensitive but “OPEN”.

What can happen in church is that to those interested or curious encounter an environment and people so different that they feel “unwelcome”.  At One Life, we really hope this is never the case.  Whilst some differences might exist, the church is a community where Gods intent is on display where His redemptive work is clear and his creativity and grace is on show.

There are stereotypes of what church should look like and what it shouldn’t. We all seem to have them hardwired in. While these originate from somewhere and not all “wrong” they are often advanced to unhelpful and dare I say unbiblical extremes.  Everyday I see hundreds of people, who might have the sense that they could never be a part of the Church. They simply wouldn’t fit. It couldn’t relate to them and they couldn’t relate to it.

While its true that the church is the people who have already “accepted Jesus”, in practice we are a people “merged” with people who have not yet accepted Jesus and even with those who perhaps never will. We are a community of people who are all in different places, people who have different starting points and different finishing points, different passions and different expressions. We know who we are by internal work not external conformity. We celebrate our relationships and differences and are open, even expectant, that God might work through them to perfect us.

The church provides full access. No one can be excluded. Our church “culture” expresses that. We do not look down on the conservative family that dresses neatly for Sunday meetings mocking them as outwardly “religious”, just like we won’t exclude the guy (or girl) with the tattooed arms. We do not exclude those who prefer hymns to contemporary rock styles of worship, the girl with the dreads a pierced tongue and eyebrow ring, a black lady or an overweight guy.

A friend told me once that as a church going guy, he never considered praying for me to be in church, I was simply to far away. He was so wrong! We cannot afford to be wrong, we will not make the call. We will offer full access, it defines us, come and see what God is doing. If you havent already, come, join in, and see how we are doing.

Comment or email please.

Being “in Christ Jesus” is a stupendous reality. It is breathtaking what it means to be in Christ. United to Christ. Bound to Christ. If you are “in Christ” listen to what it means for you:

1. In Christ Jesus you were given grace before the world was created. 1 Timothy 1:9, “He gave us grace in Christ Jesus before the ages began.”
2. In Christ Jesus you were chosen by God before creation. Ephesians 1:4, “God chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world.”
3. In Christ Jesus you are loved by God with an inseparable love. Romans 8:38–39, “I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
4. In Christ Jesus you were redeemed and forgiven for all your sins. Ephesians 1:7, “In Christ we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses.”
5. In Christ Jesus you are justified before God and the righteousness of God in Christ is imputed to you. 2 Corinthians 5:21, “For our sake God made Christ to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”
6. In Christ Jesus you have become a new creation and a son of God. 2 Corinthians 5:17, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” Galatians 3:26, “In Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.”
7. In Christ Jesus you have been seated in the heavenly places even while he lived on earth. Ephesians 2:6, “God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.”
8. In Christ Jesus all the promises of God are Yes for you. 2 Corinthians 1:20, “All the promises of God find their Yes in Christ.”
9. In Christ Jesus you are being sanctified and made holy. 1 Corinthians 1:2, “To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus.”
10. In Christ Jesus everything you really needed will be supplied. Philippians 4:19, “My God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”
11. In Christ Jesus the peace of God will guard your heart and mind. Philippians 4:7, “The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
12. In Christ Jesus you have eternal life. Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
13. And in Christ Jesus you will be raised from the dead at the coming of the Lord. 1 Corinthians 15:22, “For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.” All those united to Adam in the first humanity die. All those united to Christ in the new humanity rise to live again

How do we get into Christ?

At the unconscious and decisive level it is God’s sovereign work: “From God are you in Christ Jesus” (1 Corinthians 1:30).

But at the conscious level of our own action, it is through faith. Christ dwells in our hearts “through faith” (Ephesians 3:17). The life we live in union with his death and life “we live by faith in the Son of God” (Galatians 2:20). We are united in his death and resurrection “through faith” (Colossians 2:12).

This is a wonderful truth. Union with Christ is the ground of everlasting joy, and it is free.

Now we are doing the same for a venue. The ground here has been pretty well trodden. PE is NOT an “unreached people group”. Churches are meeting in custom auditoriums, warehouses, conference centers, school halls and some have even perfected the art of sharing.

So where to for us?

Firstly let me just say that the Gospel message and mission is our priority and that unless Jesus is building (and in-fact coming) we are pretty much wasting our time with buildings and anything else. We do know this. But this post is about a venue.

We really want to set up a place that works well as a gathering/sending/community building center. We are thinking about people. Some who are less convinced that Jesus is the way and who, we think, will appreciate a few things. Also people who have loved Jesus and perhaps know a little of “church” but are disconnected at the moment.

We like the idea that “the church” can be well represented and the Kingdom can be advanced by the stuff we have and the way we use it. So here is what we are looking for:

1. Space.

Room to operate in and room to grow into. Space for big meetings and small ones, for children to learn in and for children to play in. Space where we can freely and safely do everything that you think the church does.

2. Space.

This is the same as the first space but for different uses. Space to do some of the things you might not think the church does. Space to host “events”. Yes conferences … but more than that; Band nights, Markets, Art exhibitions, Old School movies, corporate functions, Poetry readings, Fashion shows, Classical music performances. The way we use our space will define a little of who we are and will represent a little of what we value and we are DIVERSE. This is Port Elizabeth not the outback! We are a city of people and we can engage a whole city if we have the SPACE.

3. Accessibility.

We feel we have heard God speak. Full access! That’s it. We will let God define exactly how that looks but we are thinking that it means we will have full access to the city, all parts, people, and communities. Gee I hope it means that! Also, that this city will have full access to us. They will know us, find us, feel welcomed by us, and feel at home with us. Gee I hope that’s true too. That will demand something of us as we define our church and community culture but it also has a practical side. Quite simply location is important.  We want to be central, in a “hub” area, not far off major daily routes.

4. Value.

It doesn’t have to be free or cheap but it needs to be worth it. We are trusting God for so much already so for the sake of a solid start, we are going to stay at full stretch. Value simply means we are not being ripped off (paying too much for too little) and we are not overextending on something we can’t or won’t use. We are trusting that when we find value we will “afford it”, but that’s another part of this journey, for now we are looking for value.

That’s pretty much it. Other variables and decisions relating to venue include:

1. Permanent  -  7 days a week occupation.
2. Temporary – Access on an “as we need it” arrangement.
3. Owned – Should we be looking to buy??
4. Rented – Does this make good sense?
5. One or many?

These are the thoughts that are filling our heads as we pray and drive the city. I say again that people and Jesus are our first priority as we build with Him and live in this city. Tools for the task is what this blog is about. It helps me to write it down, I hope it helps you as you read it. If you are involved in a future church plant, this will be your dilemma one day. If you are involved in this “One Life Church” plant, pray that God leads us and that He gives us the desires of our hearts. Oh and you are welcome to comment below.

People to Jesus – Life to the full.

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. “Philippians 4:6

Don’t hold back form going to the places He is leading you into, make the deals, write the songs, produce the product. Don’t hold back either, for praying and asking God for timing, protection, opportunity and blessing. Many of the prayers you need to pray, God has initiated through the vision He has placed before you.

“When the righteous prosper, the city rejoices” Proverbs 11:10

Today it seems that God has responded even as the words left our lips. Conversations and prayers spoken as dreams of a future church have resulted in relationships and responses that we could not have dreamed of. There are still more prayers to be prayed and we have a long way to go, maybe you do to, but there is also tomorrow and the opportunities it holds, and then there’s the next day and the next and the next.

Surely our God is faithful. What will you do with the dreams you have. I encourage you to press into God and make some decisions that result in faith and action.

One life – Live while you’re alive.